


Boredom

by millenniumchainsaw (Rikudera)



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh!
Genre: Codependency, Dubious Consent, Dysfunctional Relationships, Gaming, Gemshipping, M/M, Nicknames, Non-Explicit Sex, Soul Room(s) (Yu-Gi-Oh), implied tendershipping
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-17
Updated: 2017-05-17
Packaged: 2018-10-26 14:10:44
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,381
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10788306
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rikudera/pseuds/millenniumchainsaw
Summary: They're both stuck in this place, Thief-King is bored, and he wants Ryou to entertain him.





	Boredom

**Author's Note:**

> This was originally written in 2010, but has never been published until now. I originally wrote this because I was intrigued at how a gemshipping fic would work during the modern (read: 1990s) era and/or when it was compared with tendershipping. I also like fics that take place in the moments leading up to exciting events in canon.
> 
> Possible retroactive references to the doujinshi [君の為に出来る事](https://www.yaoihavenreborn.com/doujinshi/kimi-no-tame-ni-dekiru-koto) by Goendama, but it's been so many years, I honestly don't remember if they were intentional or not.

The door opens without warning. Ryou blinks but does not let himself startle.

"I'm so _bored_." Ryou caps his pen and turns around from his seat at the desk to glance at the intruder.

"I really wish you'd at least knock once in a while," Ryou frowns. Thief-King rolls his eyes.

"Been with you this long, and you still complain about that?" he asks. "Besides, would you’ve let me in if I'd knocked?" Ryou sighs in a put-upon manner, which makes Thief-King grin for a moment. "Thought not." Ryou wishes it wasn't true; he's not sure what it says about him that his token resistance to Spirits - either combined or separated into Zorc or Thief-King - barging into his soul room is mostly the result of habit rather than any actual belief in results.

"At least close the door behind you," Ryou says. Thief-King rolls his eyes, but complies, shoving it shut with his shoulder none-too-quietly. "Where's Zorc?" Thief-King scoffs.

"Tch, I dunno. Somewhere in town, by himself." Ryou had figured that was the case, since this is what usually happens when Ryou finds himself stuck in his own soul room. He never leaves his room because the only other place for him to go is Spirit's soul room, and he has absolutely zero desire to discover the contents of _that_ room. "Been doing it more often lately..."

“And?” Ryou prompts, though he’s sure the answer won't be comforting.

“I think he’s planning something.”

“Zorc is _always_ planning something,” Ryou replies calmly, turning back to his desk. His desk is uncluttered, and like the rest of his room, Ryou always knows exactly where everything is. The only permanent objects on Ryou’s desk are three photos: one of himself, Amane, and their parents from when Ryou was young; one of Ryou and his father when Ryou was in middle school; and one with Ryou, Yugi-kun, Jonouchi-kun, Honda-kun, and Anzu-chan. Since Ryou’s been writing, the temporary objects atop the desk are paper and a few pens; he’s got more pens in various colors, pencils, erasers, and paper in the desk drawer. All his supplies for working on miniatures are in a separate part of his room, next to the small shelves with all his favorite books and some games.

“But he usually tells me about it,” Thief-King complains. “I mean, most of the time, I can’t tell which parts’re me and which parts’re him _anyway_ , but he won’t _say_ anything to me about it.”

“And you think he’d tell me instead?” Ryou uncaps his pen again.

“Dunno. He’s been hanging 'round the museum, I think.” Ryou continues writing what he started before he was interrupted. “Your dad say anything to you?”

“You know I haven’t been out in almost a week,” Ryou replies. He’d lost his train of thought when he was interrupted, but he’s pretty sure the rest of his writing still flows smoothly.

“…Right. Forgot about that.” Ryou keeps writing. He can hear Thief-King slowly walking towards the desk. “Whatcha doin'?”

“…Writing a letter to Amane.”

“Your sister’s dead," Thief-King says. "Hell, even _I_ remember when that happened.”

“I’m aware of that.”

“So what’s the _point?_ ”

“If I give it to the priest, he’ll pass the message on with the rest of the prayers.”

“Don’t tell me you still believe in Christianity after seeing _real Egyptian gods_.” Ryou knows better than to take the bait and keeps writing. “…I’m _booored_.”

“And?”

“I wanna _do_ something.”

“Then please go do it yourself. I’m busy at the moment.”

" _Bunny_..." Thief-King whines, draping his arms over Ryou's shoulders from the back, effectively pinning Ryou's arms and making it impossible to continue writing. Ryou stills and then takes a deliberate breath to reign himself in; he doesn't much like Thief-King's name for him. He understands intellectually that calling each other Bakura or Ryou is just _weird_ , but did Thief-King have to pick such a cutesy, childish name?

"What," Ryou answers flatly, keeping his eyes trained on the unfinished letter. Nothing about this situation is by any stretch of the imagination cute, and he hasn't felt like a child since Amane and Mother died. At least Thief-King doesn't go around calling him _Landlord_ like Zorc does, but calling a statement like ‘ _at least he’s better than Zorc_ ’ a compliment is really missing the point.

" _Entertain_ me," Thief-King whispers, his smiling lips brushing up against Ryou's ear. Ryou doesn't really feel in the entertaining mood, but since Thief-King won't let him finish his letter, figuring out how to pass the time himself is probably a better idea than letting Thief-King come up with something.

"...If it'll make you stop complaining," Ryou relents.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Thief-King loses five games of Gin Rummy before he gets bored again.

“I don’t like this game. Pick something else.” He’s also apparently a bit of a sore loser, as evidenced by him smacking his cards onto the low table they're playing at and flopping backwards onto the pillows they've been sitting on. Ryou has a lot of pillows in his room, from small ones scattered around the floor as cushions, to a few beanbag-sized ones large enough to sleep on. The only chair in the room is at the desk. Ryou likes it because it feels like floating in a sea of marshmallows.

“We could play Blackjack,” Ryou suggests, gathering the cards to shuffle again.

“No.”

“We could play Speed.”

“No.” This might take a while, Ryou guesses.

“What about Crazy Eights?”

“Boring.”

“War?”

“Even _more_ boring.”

“Slap?” Ryou carefully avoids calling _that_ game by any of its less savory monikers.

“No.”

“Go Fish?” Ryou starts building a tower out of the cards while he waits for Thief-King to decide on something.

“No.”

“…Duel Monsters?”

“ _Ugh_.” Thief-King sits up again. “You know I only play that when… what are you doing?”

“Making a card house,” Ryou replies. There’s something about the attention to detail and quietness involved that’s very soothing.

“…Huh.” Ryou’s busy paying attention to his construction, so he doesn’t see what kind of face Thief-King is making. “How does it work?” Ryou allows himself a small smile.

“You balance the cards against each other…” Ryou demonstrates as he’s talking, “…and then you can make platforms and patterns.”

“I wanna try,” Thief-King declares.

“The stack is right there,” Ryou responds calmly, keeping his eyes on the cards he’s trying to balance. Once he gets them to stay up, he sits back to see what Thief-King’s doing.

“…This is harder than it looks,” Thief-King admits, as the first two cards he’s trying to balance against each other fall yet again.

“It just takes patience,” Ryou says. “Just go slowly.” Thief-King picks up the cards and – with his tongue sticking out the corner of his mouth just the slightest bit – tries to prop them up again. They almost seem like they’re going to stay up, but it only lasts a moment, and then they fall.

“And people do this?” Thief-King asks. “These cards are so slippery.”

“Well, bending ruins the cards,” Ryou answers, “so you have to balance them. Watch how I do it.” He takes another pair of cards from the stack and slowly, carefully adds them to the second layer of the pyramid he’s making. This one will only be three layers, since it’s a demonstration, but if Thief-King seems to like this, then Ryou will start a four-layer one. Thief-King is silent the whole time Ryou is doing this, so Ryou is pleased to find, when he looks up again, that Thief-King is looking at his card-pyramid, transfixed. “You need to be delicate.”

“…I can be delicate,” Thief-King protests, though it’s slightly delayed. “I didn’t get into all those tombs and past all those traps just sauntering through them, y’know.” He tries to get his first two cards to stand up and fails again, huffing. He looks from his two collapsed cards to Ryou’s pyramid. “…You do it again.”

“Alright.” Ryou looks back down at his cards, feeling pleased. He takes another pair of cards, and then painstakingly adds them to his pyramid. There, that’s the last bit of the second layer. He looks back up at Thief-King.

“Again.” Ryou gently places a card on the top of the second layer to act as a platform for the third layer.

“Again.” Ryou takes two more cards from the stack. The third layer is going to be the top, so he only needs one set. These last two will be the final addition, and then his tower will be complete. Everything has to be delicate, and careful, and he can’t rush. He tunes everything else out, only focusing on the two cards in his hands and making sure they balance perfectly as the apex to his construction.

Carefully… slowly… everything needs to be-

“You’re so good at this, Bunny.” Ryou freezes, but the damage has already been done. The tower of cards he’s been building falls silently into a small, scattered pile, and his face falls along with it. “…Oh.” Ryou takes a breath to calm himself, and then starts gathering the cards to put them away. He doesn’t much feel like making another tower. “…Sorry.” Ryou swallows awkwardly.

“Just don’t distract me next time,” he responds, subdued, and then gets up to put the deck of cards on the small game shelf in this room.

“Well, are there any other fiddly games you’ve got?”Thief-King asks. Ryou puts the cards away. “You like fiddly stuff, don’t you?” Ryou stays standing in front of the shelf, silent. “And I can do that kinda stuff too, really. Pick something that’s not cards.” Ryou sighs, then looks over his modest game collection. “Bunny…” Thief-King drawls. Ryou has to take another breath, after which he selects a set of blocks from the shelf and walks back to where Thief-King is sitting. “What are those?”

“They’re blocks,” Ryou says, having collected himself once more. He takes the top off the container of blocks, then holds the top with his hand and turns it over. Sliding his hand out, he lifts the container up, so the blocks make a tower. “You build a tower,” he straightens out the corners, so the block tower doesn’t have any individual pieces sticking out, “and you take turns removing the blocks.” He spends a few moments analyzing which block to demonstrate with, and then slowly pushes it out from the tower. “Then, you put the block you just took out on the top, so the tower always rebuilds itself. Whoever makes it fall is the loser.” Thief-King looks contemplative, then grins.

“This is more like it,” he declares. “I’m an expert at this kinda stuff.” He looks really into it, Ryou thinks. “Don’t be too torn up about it when I beat you, 'kay?”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Thief-King wins four out of five block-tower games, but then he’s bored again.

“You’re really lousy at this game,” Thief-King says. Ryou thinks that’s he’s actually very good at the block-tower game, since he usually wins whenever he plays with anyone else; apparently, Thief-King is just _better_ at it. It’s annoying. “It’s kinda boring just watching you lose all the time. Pick something else to do.” Ryou sighs and begins putting the blocks away.

“Do you want to play another game like that?” Ryou asks.

“Dunno.”

“I have books, if you want to read.”

“Tch. I’ll pass.” Come to think of it, Ryou’s not sure if Thief-King ever learned to read Japanese or English, or if he can only read when he’s mushed together as Spirit.

“We can paint some miniatures.” It’s worth a shot, Ryou supposes.

“ _Booooring_.” …Or not.

“I have dominoes.”

“That’s a terrible joke, Bunny.” Ryou looks down at the block container.

“…I wasn’t joking.”

“Oh, don’t make that face,” Thief-King says. Ryou looks back up; Thief-King looks impatient. Ryou stands up to put the blocks back on the shelf. “And that’s a boring game anyway, so don’t get all upset about it.”

“I’m not upset,” Ryou replies, keeping his voice even. “I think I still have a couple snap-together model kits left. You don’t even have to paint those ones.”

“Ehh…” Ryou does not hold his breath. “…nah.”

“I have lego blocks, too.”

“But then you’d lose them between the pillows and I’d step on them. Do you know how much those things hurt when you step on them?”

“I don’t lose things in here,” Ryou says. Thief-King looks skeptically back at Ryou, even though it’s the truth, and then sweeps his gaze around the room, dissatisfied. “If you don’t want to do anything, then I’m just going to finish my letter to-”

“Let’s make a pillow fort,” Thief-King interrupts, grinning. Ryou blinks. “I mean, you’ve definitely got enough of these things.” He looks around the room again, but this time is much more speculative than the first.

“…You want to make a pillow fort?” Ryou asks.

“Hmm… a pillow _maze_.” Ryou has no idea where Thief-King got this idea from. “You make it, and then I’ll try and find you.” Ryou thinks about it for a moment. On the one hand, he doesn’t like it when all his pillows get moved around, but on the other hand, at least Thief-King’s found something he wants to do again.

“…Close your eyes, then,” Ryou says. “No cheating, or I win, and then I get to make another maze. Sit down in the corner over there, and I’ll start making it around you.”

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Ryou catches Thief-King peeking the first time, so he has to tear everything down and start over. It was a good design, the first time, and it seems a shame to waste it, but now the second version is going to take up more time to make. He makes Thief-King actually _face_ the corner, this second time, and then starts on his work again.

“Knocking down the walls also counts as cheating,” he reminds Thief-King as he works. “And even if a wall falls on accident, you have to stay within the maze.”

“Yeah, yeah.” Ryou makes sure to make as many false paths, turns, and dead-ends as possible. He’s saved the very center for a spiral where he’ll hide once he’s done building the maze. Just in case, he builds a second spiral in the far corner from where Thief-King is sitting. “Make sure it’s a good maze, though, ‘cause I’m an expert at these things.”

“Be patient,” Ryou replies, and works on another dead-end. After a few more minutes, he double-checks the layout in general, and then sits down in the middle, pulling the last few pillows over his head to make the roof. “Okay, you can start now.”

“This is gonna be fun,” he hears Thief-King say from this corner. Ryou doesn’t reply, only makes himself as small and still as possible. “That’s smart, staying quiet; I’ll still find you, though.” For a minute or two, the only sound Ryou can hear is Thief-King shuffling through the pillow-maze. “For just being pillows, this is actually pretty good.”

Ryou makes sure his breathing isn’t too loud.

“Not in that corner…” Ryou hugs his knees tight against his chest. “Not over here…” Ryou tries to listen for where Thief-King might be. Another minute passes. “Or over here…” He’s getting closer. “Where’re you hiding?”

Ryou puts a hand over his mouth to quiet himself. He doesn’t know why he’s so nervous. It’s just a pillow maze.

“Bunny…” Ryou inhales sharply, and even though his hand is over his mouth, he still makes a quiet sound. “You over _this_ way?” Now Thief-King is definitely getting closer. “I think you are, aren't you?”

Ryou squishes himself even smaller than before. There’s only one more fork before the final spiral.

“Am I getting closer?” Thief-King should be at the fork right about now. “You’re gonna be in the center, I bet.” Ryou can hear him shuffling down the path to the spiral.

This was a bad idea.

“Oh, there was one of these in the corner, too.” It’s past the time to be worried about how loud he’s breathing, so Ryou brings his hand from his mouth to hug his knees again. It’s only a matter of time, now.

Thief-King’s head pokes around the corner.

“Found you,” Thief-King smiles. Ryou doesn’t move, just looks back at him. “Aren’t you even gonna say anything?”

“…You found me,” Ryou says quietly. Thief-King crawls closer.

“What’s with that face again?” Thief-King asks. Ryou doesn’t really know what kind of face he’s making. “I don’t even get congratulations?”

“You win.” Ryou stays put. Thief-King moves up right in front of him.

“Do I at least get a prize?” If Ryou moved back, he’d disturb the pillows, so he stays where he is. “Usually, there’s a prize once you get to the end of the maze.”

“There weren’t any prizes in the other games.”

“I bet I can think of something,” Thief-King says, bringing his face close to Ryou’s.

“…Let’s play a different game,” Ryou whispers, turning his face away.

“But this one is so _fun_.” Ryou keeps his gaze focused on the pillow wall at his side. “It really was a good maze, y’know, for being made out of pillows.”

“…I want to play a different game.” Thief-King moves back a little. When Ryou looks back at him, he’s still smiling.

“Well, if you ever run out of ideas…” Ryou swallows.

“I don't think so,” he replies.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Pick-Up Sticks?”

“No.”

“Charades?”

“No.”

“I have a coloring book that’s not done yet.”

“No.”

“Don’t suppose you’ve changed your mind about Crazy Eights?”

“No.”

“There’s always Duel Monsters.”

“I’d rather play with your stupid models than do _that_.”

“Well, I still have the snap-together models,” Ryou suggests, smiling, “if you want to do that instead.”

“…I can’t believe I just let you convince me into doing that,” Thief-King groans. It’s a small victory, but Ryou keeps track of them all.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

"...I'm still bored," Thief-King says. “Listening to you babble on and on about that is putting me to sleep.”

"Well, what do _you_ want to do?" Ryou asks. Thief-King had gotten bored again when his snap-together model was done, so Ryou had moved on to models in general. He's just spent a solid half-hour going over the finer points of the various reasons he thinks wood is the best material to make his miniatures with, and his pupil's attention span has left much to be desired.

"Are you really letting me pick?" Thief-King responds, perking up. Ryou throws his hands up in the air, then flops backwards onto one of his many nests of pillows, long since put back in their proper places.

"At this point, I'm almost as bored as you," he sighs in response. "Just pick something and stop demanding to be entertained."

"I can pick anything I want?" Thief-King asks, leaning over Ryou, grinning. Ryou blinks once, slowly, and remains silent. Thief-King smirks. "You're making this too easy, y’know," he continues, leaning closer.

"You'd just do it eventually, anyway," Ryou points out. He just wants Thief-King to stop whining about how _difficult_ his life is just because he’s been stuck inside for three or four hours, when this is something that happens to Ryou _all the time_.

"Hmm... prob'ly, yeah," Thief-King agrees with a smile. "But I don't remember you being so cynical about it before..." Now, he looks contemplative.

"Maybe you just have a bad memory," Ryou suggests softly.

"Wouldn't surprise me," Thief-King frowns. "Wish I could remember stuff without bein' stuck here."

"I don't want to talk about this," Ryou says. This makes Thief-King grin again, lopsided and slightly mischievous.

"Talking is overrated, isn't it?" Ryou blinks silently back at him one more time. "Then this'll be more fun."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Thief-King has never been subtle; Ryou figures he just doesn't know _how_. It's not news, so Ryou doesn't waste any energy being annoyed by it.

“Why d'you gotta be so frigid all the time?” Thief-King grouses. It’s a bit galling, however, to be called _frigid_ in a situation like this. Ryou doesn't much want think about what he could be called besides frigid, so he starts reciting the periodic table in his head. Hydrogen, Helium, Lithium.

“Stop wasting time and just get it over with,” he replies, staring at nothing in particular. Beryllium, Boron, Carbon, Nitrogen, Oxygen.

“You could at least put on a _little_ more of a show. You're makin' me do all the work, here.” Fluorine, Neon, Sodium, Magnesium, Aluminium, Silicon, Phosphorus, Sulfur.

“Are you done yet?” Ryou asks. Chlorine, Argon, Potass-

“What, are you late for an appointment? Got somewhere else you just _gotta_ be?” Ryou flushes and turns his face into one of the pillows. He thinks that if Thief-King is going to be in his soul room, he should remain entirely Thief-King while he’s here. The thought makes him lose his place in the table, which is annoying. He starts reciting in his head again, from the beginning, because it's less embarrassing than thinking about the sounds he's making out loud. Hydrogen, Helium, Lithium.

“…Tch. I didn’t mean it like that.” Beryllium, Boron, Carbon, Nitrogen, Oxygen, Fluorine. “I _didn’t_.” N-Neon, Sodium, Magnesium, Aluminium, Silicon. “Bunny…” …Hydrogen, Helium, Lithium, Beryllium. “Say something, please…” Boron, Carbon.

“Are you done yet...” Ryou repeats, all the breath squeezed out of him. Nitrogen, Oxygen, Fluorine, Neon, Sodium, Magnesium.

“...Almost.” Aluminium, Silicon, Phosphorus, Sulfur, Chlorine, Argon, Potassium, Calcium, Scandium, Titanium, Vanadium, Chromium, Manganese, Iron, Cobalt, Nickel, Copper.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Ryou is annoyed because that only managed to kill about fifteen minutes, and now Thief-King is going to be bored again.

“…I’m sorry,” Thief-King says. Ryou rolls over in the opposite direction. Thief-King drapes his robe over Ryou, who curls into it despite himself. He hates himself for being too polite to ignore it completely.

“I’m bored,” he mumbles. “Think up something else to do.”

“Bunny…” There’s a long pause. Then, again, “I really didn’t mean-”

“Have you thought up anything yet?” Ryou interrupts. There’s another pause. Thief-King really has a horrible attention span, sometimes.

“I could tell you a story?” Thief-King suggests after a moment, uncertain. Ryou considers this, then rolls some more, until he can turn his head to look at Theif-King.

“…What’s it about?”

“…Um.” Ryou thinks this conversation might actually be making time run _slower_. “Once, there was this Bunny, and he lived in a-”

“No, pick a different story.” Ryou doesn’t need to hear any more to know that he won’t like it.

“Okay, well… hmm.” Maybe Ryou should come up with the next idea, after all. Watching paint dry is more interesting than this. “Okay, I’ve got a different one.” Ryou remains silent. “Once, there was a fox, and he lived in a burrow under a tree.”

“The foxes in Japan are women,” Ryou corrects.

“When did I say the story takes place in Japan?” Thief-King replies. “And this fox was a boy fox.” He continues. “The fox lived in a burrow under a tree, which grew in a forest on the edge of a farming village, in France.”

“Why France?” If Thief-King ruins the _Little Prince_ story, Ryou is not going to be happy.

“Because it’s not Japan. Anyway, the fox was very happy in his burrow, and always had lots of good food to eat. He would hunt the mice and birds that lived in the forest, or he would sneak onto the nearby farms for other delicacies…” Thief-King launches into a tale of the fox’s many adventures. Despite himself, Ryou manages to fall asleep halfway through a particularly meandering tale of the fox’s daring escape from the wicked farmer’s fierce hunting dogs.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

When Ryou wakes up, he's surprised to find that he's back in his apartment, apparently in full control of his body again. He takes the ring off his neck, curls and uncurls all of his fingers to make sure they all work properly, and then checks the calendar to see what day it is. It's the weekend, and his body is exhausted, but he gets ready to go out and visit his father at the museum. He packs the ring in his bag and silently hopes he won't run into Yugi-kun or the others, or have to answer any awkward questions.

"Visiting again, Ryou?" his father asks, once Ryou sees him. "You'll spoil me this way." Ryou, who hasn't seen his father in over a month, smiles politely. "Let me guess, you want to ask if I found those documents."

"...You guessed it, Father."

"Well, today is your lucky day. I've got them back in the office. Shall we go look at them?"

"I can't wait." Ryou follows his father back to one of the offices and waits patiently while his father gathers a set of diagrams, drawings, and writings for him. He leafs through them, trying to figure out what they're for.

"I have to say, Ryou, this is a very ambitious project you're undertaking." His father sounds enthusiastic; like Ryou, he's always been obsessed with dead things.

"Do you think so, Father?" Ryou comments, still trying to make sense of the documents.

"I know you like making models, and it'll be a fine addition to the exhibit Domino's collaborated on with the Egyptian Archaeological Society, but to complete such a detailed and accurate replica..." Ryou stills.

He should have known that this was about the Pharaoh.

 _...Hey, Landlord, can you do me a favor?_ Spirit seems to be merged together again. He's mostly Zorc, these days; Thief-King only shows up when they're separated.

 _How long were you going to wait before letting me know?_ Ryou asks silently.

 _Isn't that why you came to the museum in the first place?_

"...Ryou?" Ryou blinks and looks up from the papers, back to his father.

"My apologies, Father," he responds. "I guess I got a little too into what I was reading." His father sighs.

"Your interest is admirable," his father says, "and I know that particular dynasty is when some of the most intriguing artifacts in our collaboration with the Egyptians are from, but there's so little _information_ out there. Think about how long it took to gather just this much."

"Maybe after I'm finished..." Ryou says, thinking carefully, "we'll be able to see things from a new angle." His father smiles, looking very proud.

"That's the attitude that convinced me into this. I should be more encouraging." Ryou smiles back. "A model of the palace and surrounding villages and tombs, exactly as it appeared back then..." Ryou turns back to the desk and starts gathering up the papers. "Ah, you probably want to get started right away, don't you?"

"...You've guessed right again, Father."

"Those are all copies, so don't worry about holding onto them for as long as it takes to make the model."

"Thank you. I'll keep that in mind." He puts the papers in his bag and starts walking towards the door.

"Oh, Ryou, I just noticed. You're not wearing the ring I gave you today." Ryou pauses.

"It's in my bag, Father."

"It's just that you look different without it on. You're always wearing it whenever I see you, so it's a little strange." Ryou's known for some time now that he's become the exception to the rule, but he speaks so little with his father that he doesn't worry himself over the man not noticing.

"...I really should be going."

"...Right. Well, good luck."

"Thank you." Ryou leaves the museum to go back to his apartment. He'll have to go over the documents for quite a while, since he'll need to make some maps before starting any actual construction.

_So you'll do it?_

_Was that a question or a statement, Spirit?_ Ryou asks calmly.

 _I knew you'd see it my way_ , Spirit laughs. _Let's just keep this between us, alright?_

 _...Right_. Ryou continues walking back to his apartment, since Spirit is still hovering near him. Spirit is invisible to others like this, but his presence is something that Ryou can always feel, when Spirit manifests this much.

And then Ryou sees Yugi-kun walking in his direction.

 _I don't want you to get derailed by the Pharaoh's vessel taking up all our time_ , Spirit says. _Avoid him if you can._

 _And if I can't?_ He won't say it to Spirit's face, but Ryou doesn't _want_ to avoid Yugi-kun. He hasn't seen his friends in a week, and even if they've never spoken about it outright, Yugi-kun is the one who probably has the best idea of what Ryou's life is like.

 _Then after you're done wasting time with him, you'll stay up until enough of the mapping is done._ That would probably mean another all-nighter. Ryou's body would most certainly protest against that, but it's preferable to deliberately provoking Spirit's anger by refusing.

"Bakura-kun!" Yugi-kun is waving, so Ryou waves back. "I'm glad I found you so quickly," Yugi-kun smiles. The puzzle, hanging by a chain around his neck, glints in the sunlight as he walks unassumingly up to Ryou. Ryou clutches the handle of his bag just the slightest bit more tightly, but doesn't let his politely pleased expression drop for a second.

"Were you looking for me?" Ryou asks, mostly succeeding in keeping his attention focused on the shorter teen in front of him.

"I wasn't sure if you'd be at your apartment or out somewhere," Yugi-kun explains, "so I'm glad I was able to get ahold of you when I did." He's still in the habit of wearing his school uniform on the weekends, but it's become such a part of who Yugi-kun is that it doesn't seem strange at all, to Ryou. "Honda-kun rented a karaoke room for the whole gang. We were all going to go out for burgers after, too. We haven't done that in a while, so I thought it'd be fun."

 _You need to start mapping tonight_ , Spirit says.

"I don't know," Ryou hedges, trying to figure out a response that won't make anyone suspicious, "I'd like to go, but I might be busy with other things tonight..." He looks at Yugi-kun apologetically. If he's careful enough, he might even get to actually hang out with his friends. Ryou has to simultaneously convince Yugi-kun he wants to go and Spirit that he doesn't, but he's only been able to pull off something like this a few times before.

Of course, the two people most capable of making Ryou lose his calm are the two people listening right now, but Ryou is fairly confident in his success. As long as the Pharaoh doesn't complicate things further, he should be fine...

"You've been saying that a lot lately," Yugi-kun frowns. Ryou blinks before he has the chance to contain it; he knows Spirit hates the Pharaoh, but usually, Spirit is better at keeping up the charade. He must be distracted with his RPG plans.

"I, um, I'm sorry. You're right, Yugi-kun; I should be more social." It's a lot harder to lie to Yugi-kun than it is to lie to his father. "It sounds like fun, and I can put the other things off for a bit. I'll go this time." Yugi-kun's eyes dart ever-so-slightly to the side, then back again; if Ryou hadn’t been looking for it, he would've missed it completely. It doesn't really matter, to Ryou. He's not resentful or jealous. He is just very aware of exactly how lucky Yugi-kun is.

 _You're making the Pharaoh suspicious_ , Spirit says. _Be more careful_.

 _...Yes_. Ryou really hopes his sudden nervousness isn't visible to Yugi-kun or the Pharaoh.

"Are you sure?" Yugi-kun asks, looking concerned still. "I wouldn't want to bother you if it's something important. If you have other obligations, I understand." Then, he smiles reassuringly. "I'm sure the others feel the same way. We'll still be here when you're finished." Ryou would rather think of this response as fishing for more information; kindness is too hard to deal with.

"It's... it's fine, Yugi-kun. No need to worry on my account. I can make time to hang out with you guys."

 _Remember what I told you_ , Spirit warns.

 _...I always do, Spirit_ , Ryou replies, then smiles for Yugi-kun so the other boy won't notice anything.

"Let's get going, then," Yugi-kun nods, and Ryou slings his bag over his shoulder as the four of them walk down the street together.

**Author's Note:**

> Here's a little playlist of songs I was listening to while writing this:  
> Dominique – The Singing Nun  
> When Will My Life Begin (and first reprise) – Tangled  
> Spanish Doll - Poe  
> We Never Change – Coldplay  
> Mother Knows Best – Tangled  
> Dear Prudence – The Beatles


End file.
